--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Bertolt Brecht: I would also like to be…" description: "\"“Bertolt Brecht: I would also like to be wise. In the old books it says what wisdom is: To shun the strife of the world and to live out Your brief time..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a58/madeleine-thien-26559_books_bertolt-brecht-i-would-also-like-to-be-w_385611.jpg" --- # Bertolt Brecht: I would also like to be wise. In the old… ![“Bertolt Brecht: I would also like to be wise. In the old books it says what wisdom is: To shun the strife of the world and to live out Your brief time without fear” quote by Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a58/madeleine-thien-26559_books_bertolt-brecht-i-would-also-like-to-be-w_385611.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a58/madeleine-thien-26559_books_bertolt-brecht-i-would-also-like-to-be-w_385611.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a58/madeleine-thien-26559_books_bertolt-brecht-i-would-also-like-to-be-w_385611.jpg) > ““Bertolt Brecht: I would also like to be wise. In the old books it says what wisdom is: To shun the strife of the world and to live out Your brief time without fear”” [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker wishes for wisdom, describing it as avoiding worldly conflict and living fearlessly in a short life. **In simple terms:** Seek wisdom by shunning conflict and living fearlessly. Key Takeaway Avoid conflict, embrace courage. Themes wisdom peace courage Mood reflective thoughtful Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - personal growth - spiritual practice - conflict resolution Key Concepts philosophy ethics Questions to Reflect On - How can you practice fearlessness in daily life? - What conflicts must you face to grow? A Different Perspective Wisdom may also require engaging with the world to effect change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bertolt Brecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bertolt-brecht-227750/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Brecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brecht/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Old books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-books/) [Says Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/says-wisdom-733013/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) [Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wise/) ## Related quotes > [I have a great interest in Victorian musical & cabaret performances and Weimar artists so the references are there, to Cabaret and also All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-serkis/i-have-a-great-interest-in-victorian-musical-cabaret-performances-and/) [Andy Serkis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-serkis/) > [“Food comes first and then morality Bertolt brecht”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertolt-brecht/food-comes-first-and-then-morality-bertolt-brecht/) [bertolt brecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertolt-brecht/) > [“La cuerda cortada puede volver a anudarse, vuelve a aguantar, pero está cortada. Quizá volvamos a tropezar, pero allí donde me abandonaste no volverás…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-riso/la-cuerda-cortada-puede-volver-a-anudarse-vuelve-a-aguantar-pero-est/) [Walter Riso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-riso/) > [Bob was very influenced by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill. That huge type of creativity which takes nothing and makes it into something very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-reinking/bob-was-very-influenced-by-bertolt-brecht-and-kurt-weill-that-huge/) [Ann Reinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-reinking/) > [... where Solomon says that 'Wisdom has built herself a house' (Prov. 9:1), he refers darkly in these words to the preparation of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-of-nyssa/where-solomon-says-that-wisdom-has-built-herself-a-house-prov-9-1-he/) [Gregory of Nyssa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-of-nyssa/) > [“Love says 'I am everything.' Wisdom says 'I am nothing.' Between the two, my life flows.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-nisargadatta-maharaj/love-says-i-am-everything-wisdom-says-i-am-nothing-between-the-two-my/) [Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-nisargadatta-maharaj/) > [“He that feeds the hungry refreshes his own soul, says wisdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/he-that-feeds-the-hungry-refreshes-his-own-soul-says-wisdom/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“There’s a Chinese proverb that says “Wisdom is avoiding all thoughts that weaken you & embracing those that strengthen you” Your mind is like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo/there-s-a-chinese-proverb-that-says-wisdom-is-avoiding-all-thoughts/) [Pablo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo/) > [One of the old philosophers says that it is the part of wisdom to sometimes seem a fool; but in our day there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-chandler-haliburton/one-of-the-old-philosophers-says-that-it-is-the-part-of-wisdom-to/) [Thomas Chandler Haliburton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-chandler-haliburton/) > [“Subtle! Subtlety is bourgeois. Brecht us that when he popped drama’s cherry. He fucked drama until it stopped being subtle, like a lady, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-burr-gerrard/subtle-subtlety-is-bourgeois-brecht-us-that-when-he-popped-drama-s/) [David Burr Gerrard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-burr-gerrard/) > [I have great respect for Brecht, but his path is not mine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-brook/i-have-great-respect-for-brecht-but-his-path-is-not-mine/) [Peter Brook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-brook/) > [I was called up in the war and sent to a hospital. I dressed wounds, applied iodine, gave enemas, did blood transfusions. If the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertolt-brecht/i-was-called-up-in-the-war-and-sent-to-a-hospital-i-dressed-wounds/) [Bertolt Brecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertolt-brecht/) > [While I don't script and I don't use other performers, I think my taste for underlying precision gives me something in common with Allan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-antin/while-i-don-t-script-and-i-don-t-use-other-performers-i-think-my/) [David Antin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-antin/) > [“As a youth I enjoyed — indeed, like most of my contemporaries, revered — the agitprop plays of Brecht, and his indictments of Capitalism.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/as-a-youth-i-enjoyed-indeed-like-most-of-my-contemporaries-revered/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [“Brecht was a cynical bohemian bogey of the middle classes, but also much more than a mere provocateur. He developed and dramatized his political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-bloom/brecht-was-a-cynical-bohemian-bogey-of-the-middle-classes-but-also/) [Harold Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-bloom/) ## More by Madeleine Thien > [“She wanted to tell them that whatever happened, whatever they chose, one day they would have to come awake, everyone would have to stand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/she-wanted-to-tell-them-that-whatever-happened-whatever-they-chose/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“What mattered was the here and now and not the life before, what mattered were the changeable things of today and tomorrow and not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/what-mattered-was-the-here-and-now-and-not-the-life-before-what/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“The things you experience," she continued, "are written on your cells as memories and patterns, which are reprinted again on the next generation. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/the-things-you-experience-she-continued-are-written-on-your-cells-as/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“IN THOSE DAYS, your village might change hands every few weeks, one day to the Communists, the next to the Nationalists, the next to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/in-those-days-your-village-might-change-hands-every-few-weeks-one-day/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“Tomorrow begins from another dawn, when we will be fast asleep.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/tomorrow-begins-from-another-dawn-when-we-will-be-fast-asleep/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“He kisses her, and she knows, somehow, that he is asking for help, for an end to the sadness they are causing one another.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/he-kisses-her-and-she-knows-somehow-that-he-is-asking-for-help-for-an/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“If they want to come for you, they will come, and it doesn't matter what you read or what you failed to read. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/if-they-want-to-come-for-you-they-will-come-and-it-doesn-t-matter/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“If some people say what is in their hearts and other people say what glides easily off the tongue, how can we talk to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/if-some-people-say-what-is-in-their-hearts-and-other-people-say-what/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“When she returned, she was full of life, impassioned. She seemed to want change, within herself, between them, and she believed all things were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/when-she-returned-she-was-full-of-life-impassioned-she-seemed-to-want/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“She saw a soldier strike a boy ahead of her with his baton. Behind him, a girl turned and spat in the soldier’s face.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/she-saw-a-soldier-strike-a-boy-ahead-of-her-with-his-baton-behind-him/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [I like to think of home as a verb, something we keep recreating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/i-like-to-think-of-home-as-a-verb-something-we-keep-recreating/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“How does a copy become more than a copy? Is art the creation of something new and original, or simply the continuous enlargement, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/how-does-a-copy-become-more-than-a-copy-is-art-the-creation-of/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“What was misfortune but the quality of existing as something, or someone else, inside?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/what-was-misfortune-but-the-quality-of-existing-as-something-or/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“I've got nothing to offer you kids but these noodles. They're good noodles but they won't change the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/i-ve-got-nothing-to-offer-you-kids-but-these-noodles-they-re-good/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) > [“She says that she held on to the memory as if it were a touchstone, something that could anchor her. She knows, has always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/she-says-that-she-held-on-to-the-memory-as-if-it-were-a-touchstone/) [Madeleine Thien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) [Explore all 21 Madeleine Thien quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Bertolt Brecht: I would also like to be wise. In the old books it says what wisdom is: To shun the strife of the world and to live out Your brief time without fear”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Madeleine Thien" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/bertolt-brecht-i-would-also-like-to-be-wise-in-the-old-books-it-says/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/bertolt-brecht-i-would-also-like-to-be-wise-in-the-old-books-it-says/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a58/madeleine-thien-26559_books_bertolt-brecht-i-would-also-like-to-be-w_385611.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a58/madeleine-thien-26559_books_bertolt-brecht-i-would-also-like-to-be-w_385611.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a58/madeleine-thien-26559_books_bertolt-brecht-i-would-also-like-to-be-w_385611.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Bertolt Brecht: I would also like to be wise. In the old books it says what wisdom is: To shun the strife of…” — Madeleine Thien", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Madeleine Thien", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-thien/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Bertolt Brecht: I would also like...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/bertolt-brecht-i-would-also-like-to-be-wise-in-the-old-books-it-says/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-thien/bertolt-brecht-i-would-also-like-to-be-wise-in-the-old-books-it-says/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```